17:8 “You are to say to them: ‘Any man 1 from the house of Israel or 2 from the foreigners who reside 3 in their 4 midst, who offers 5 a burnt offering or a sacrifice 17:9 but does not bring it to the entrance of the Meeting Tent to offer it 6 to the Lord – that person will be cut off from his people. 7
Prohibition against Eating Blood
17:10 “‘Any man 8 from the house of Israel or from the foreigners who reside 9 in their 10 midst who eats any blood, I will set my face against that person who eats the blood, and I will cut him off from the midst of his people, 11 17:11 for the life of every living thing 12 is in the blood. 13 So I myself have assigned it to you 14 on the altar to make atonement for your lives, for the blood makes atonement by means of the life. 15 17:12 Therefore, I have said to the Israelites: No person among you is to eat blood, 16 and no resident foreigner who lives among you is to eat blood. 17
17:13 “‘Any man from the Israelites 18 or from the foreigners who reside 19 in their 20 midst who hunts a wild animal 21 or a bird that may be eaten 22 must pour out its blood and cover it with soil, 17:14 for the life of all flesh is its blood. 23 So I have said to the Israelites: You must not eat the blood of any living thing 24 because the life of every living thing is its blood – all who eat it will be cut off. 25
Regulations for Eating Carcasses
17:15 “‘Any person 26 who eats an animal that has died of natural causes 27 or an animal torn by beasts, whether a native citizen or a foreigner, 28 must wash his clothes, bathe in water, and be unclean until evening; then he becomes clean. 17:16 But if he does not wash his clothes 29 and does not bathe his body, he will bear his punishment for iniquity.’” 30
Exhortation to Obedience and Life
18:1 The Lord spoke to Moses: 18:2 “Speak to the Israelites and tell them, ‘I am the Lord your God! 18:3 You must not do as they do in the land of Egypt where you have been living, 31 and you must not do as they do in the land of Canaan into which I am about to bring you; 32 you must not 33 walk in their statutes. 18:4 You must observe my regulations 34 and you must be sure to walk in my statutes. 35 I am the Lord your God. 18:5 So you must keep 36 my statutes and my regulations; anyone who does so will live by keeping them. 37 I am the Lord.
Laws of Sexual Relations
18:6 “‘No man is to approach any close relative 38 to have sexual intercourse with her. 39 I am the Lord. 40 18:7 You must not 41 expose your father’s nakedness by having sexual intercourse with your mother. 42 She is your mother; you must not have intercourse with her. 18:8 You must not have sexual intercourse with your father’s wife; she is your father’s nakedness. 43 18:9 You must not have sexual intercourse with your sister, whether she is your father’s daughter or your mother’s daughter, 44 whether she is born in the same household or born outside it; 45 you must not have sexual intercourse with either of them. 46 18:10 You must not expose the nakedness of your son’s daughter or your daughter’s daughter by having sexual intercourse with them, because they are your own nakedness. 47 18:11 You must not have sexual intercourse with the daughter of your father’s wife born of your father; she is your sister. You must not have intercourse with her. 48 18:12 You must not have sexual intercourse with your father’s sister; she is your father’s flesh. 49 18:13 You must not have sexual intercourse with your mother’s sister, because she is your mother’s flesh. 18:14 You must not expose the nakedness of your father’s brother; you must not approach his wife to have sexual intercourse with her. 50 She is your aunt. 51 18:15 You must not have sexual intercourse with your daughter-in-law; she is your son’s wife. You must not have intercourse with her. 18:16 You must not have sexual intercourse with your brother’s wife; she is your brother’s nakedness. 52 18:17 You must not have sexual intercourse with both a woman and her daughter; you must not take as wife either her son’s daughter or her daughter’s daughter to have intercourse with them. 53 They are closely related to her 54 – it is lewdness. 55 18:18 You must not take a woman in marriage and then marry her sister as a rival wife 56 while she is still alive, 57 to have sexual intercourse with her.
